Top schools for college-bound kids

This fall, 2 million U.S. high school seniors are gearing up to apply to approximately 3,500 colleges. How will they know which school is right for them? Which are the strongest academically and the toughest to get into? Where are the top party schools? Robert Franek of the Princeton Review was invited on the “Today” show to discuss the all-important issues facing your college-bound kids and found in "The Best 361 Colleges: The Smart Student's Guide to Colleges." Here’s an excerpt:          

Best Overall Academic Experience for Undergraduates
Based on The Princeton Review Academic Rating

1. Reed College
2. Marlboro College
3. St. John’s College (NM)
4. Swarthmore College
5. Williams College

Students Happy With Financial Aid
Based on students’ assessments of how satisfied they are with their financial aid package.

1. Princeton University
2. Lake Forest College
3. Knox College
4. Claremont McKenna College
5. Truman State University

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Students Dissatisfied With Financial Aid
Based on students’ assessments of how satisfied they are with their financial aid package.

1. New York University
2. University of Mary Washington
3. University of Massachusetts — Amherst
4. Penn State University Park
5. University of Tennessee — Knoxville

Happiest Students
Overall, how happy are you?

1. Stanford University
2. Whitman College
3. Brown University
4. Southern Methodist University
5. Rhodes College

Most Beautiful Campus
Based on students’ rating of campus beauty.

1. Pepperdine University
2. Agnes Scott College
3. Sweet Briar College
4. College of the Atlantic
5. Mercer University — Macon

Students Most Nostalgic for Bill Clinton
Based on students’ assessment of their personal political views.

1. Mills College
2. Bard College
3. New College of Florida
4. Hampshire College
5. Warren Wilson College

Party Schools
Based on a combination of survey questions concerning the use of alcohol and drugs, hours of study each day, and the popularity of the Greek system.

1. University of Wisconsin — Madison
2. Ohio University — Athens
3. Lehigh University
4. University of California — Santa Barbara
5. State University of New York at Albany

For more on the rankings, visit the Princeton Review Web site.

Excerpted from “The Best 361 Colleges, 2006 Edition” by Robert Franek et al. Copyright © 2005 by Princeton Review. Published by Princeton Review. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt can be used without permission of the publisher.

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